Author Archives: Alison Spath

Cottage Cheese in Da House!

February 10th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Healthy Snack Attack - (3 Comments)

Today we’re going to look at cottage cheese as an affordable health food option because it’s on The List.

Honestly, I rarely buy cottage cheese.  I like it, but it’s not what I would call My Most Favorite Thing Ever.  I try to buy organic dairy products (not always, but most of the time) and organic cottage cheese always seems kind of expensive to me… with a $4.99 price tag (!!) on a 16 oz container of Organic Valley cottage cheese, this is one item I only buy when I’ve really got a hankering for cottage cheese.  (i.e., not that often.)

Organic Valley 2% Cottage Cheese  Read more...

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Oatmeal is Cheap (and this post is random)

February 7th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (11 Comments)

(It’s Friday night and I’m writing about oatmeal.  See –> “this post is random.”)

With all the reading and blogging I’ve done about eating less grains and cutting down on carbs, I have a confession to make.

I still love oatmeal.

I know, I know, who cares!  It’s just oatmeal.  The world has much bigger problems than this.  But it sort of feels like a dirty carb secret.  I READ GRAIN BRAIN!  I’VE READ THE PALEO BOOKS!  I’m not supposed to like oatmeal anymore!

But I do.  I admit it.  Sometime I eat oatmeal.  Love me.  Read more...

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Make Your Own Laundry Detergent

February 1st, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Healthy Habits - (7 Comments)

Over the summer I saw an article from Make Magazine about making your own laundry detergent.  While we’re talking about eating healthy on a budget, this is a nice time to talk about a slightly different way to save some money at the grocery store.  (On a non-food item of course, but still might be a part of your grocery budget.)

I like to buy the more earth friendly, natural brands of household cleaning products (Seventh Generation, Ecos, Citra Solv are a few of my favorite brands) for both the environmental and health concerns.  These natural cleaning products are typically more expensive than commercial brands and can quickly increase your grocery bill.  Much like saving money on preparing your own food – making your own cleaning products at home can totally pay off too.  Read more...

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Sweet Potato Hash

January 28th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (3 Comments)

Today we’re making sweet potato hash.

Sweet Potato hash

And by we I mean *I*, and by today I mean *yesterday*.

Whoever, whenever – sweet potatoes are cheap, healthy and delicious.  One of the best things about this series of affordable healthy foods is that it’s encouraging me to find new ways to prepare a bunch of my favorite foods so I don’t bore us all to tears with the same old, same old.

Well cry not my potato loving friends!  Sweet potato hash is new to me and was a welcome change from my default roasted sweet potatoes that I always make.  (If sweet potato hash is not new to you – then here, have a tissue.  And I guess I did still roast them, but still – THIS IS DIFFERENT!)  Read more...

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Red Pepper and Cauliflower Bisque

January 26th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Dinner Time - (12 Comments)

This was supposed to be post #9 of 44 into this series of Healthy Eating on a Budget.  Cauliflower was on today’s agenda.  Unfortuantely, it wasn’t until after I made, photographed, devoured and sat down to write this post about Red Pepper and Cauliflower Bisque that I realized cauliflower is NOT on the list of affordable healthy food items under a $1 that I’ve been working from.

Can you hear me groaning from here?  Planning fail.  Well guess what!  I’m going make a case for cauliflower anyway, because that list of 44 healthy foods is not the boss of me.  More importantly though, this soup was too delicious to not share.  Read more...

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Spinach: Keeping the Green in Your Wallet

January 22nd, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (2 Comments)

This is the container of spinach I typically buy from Wegmans.

Spinach Container

For $3.99 you get 3.5 (2 cup) servings.  $3.99 divided by 7 cups of spinach works out to be $0.53 cents per cup.  This is in line with the spinach price listed in the 44 Healthy Food Items Under $1.

Spinach and kale are among the dirty dozen – I rarely make an exception when it comes to buying leafy greens, I feel strongly about sticking with organic when it comes to spinach, lettuce, kale and the like.  Conventional greens are said to be highly sprayed, spinach alone is covered with 48 different pesticides and chemicals.  (ACK!)  Read more...

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Potluck Lentils

January 20th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Party Time - (6 Comments)

I’ve blogged about this recipe before (it’s one of my favorites!) but today we’re going to talk about the cost break down of this giant pot of Coconut Curried Red Lentil Chili.

I made this yesterday to take to a winter (indoor!) picnic with a bunch of our homeschooling friends.  This is one of my go-to potluck meals because it’s inexpensive, it’s “something different” while also being delicious and healthy.  All of my favorite adjectives in one big pot!  Another reason I like this chili for a potluck is because it’s a good option for people with dietary restrictions – it’s gluten free, nut free and made without any animal products for our vegetarian and vegan friends.  Read more...

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Broccoli and Cheese Mini Frittatas

January 18th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (5 Comments)

Broccoli shows up at #37 in the list of 44 Healthy Foods Under a $1 and this is at least true for conventional broccoli – organic tends to be more expensive.

Broccoli is at low risk for pest invasion so it’s supposedly sprayed less than other vegetables, but the Environmental Working Group puts broccoli right in the middle list of their list of Fruits and Vegetables with Pesticide Residue (ordered from worst to best) – what’s a semi-paranoid produce penny pincher to do?  Read more...

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Much Ado About Yogurt (and an Orange Creamsicle Smoothie, Revisited)

January 16th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Breakfast - (3 Comments)

Yogurt is on the list of affordable healthy foods, but I have a good feeling that you’re not sitting there thinking “Oh Alison, please tell us more about this curious food item that I’ve never heard of before!”

Yes, yogurt is good for us – this is not news.  But it’s also worth saying that not all yogurt is created equal.  There are plenty of yogurt items in the dairy section that are not what I would call “healthy” by any stretch of the word.  I recommend taking a close look at the label if you’re eating yogurt for the health benefits and put back anything that has an especially long list of ingredients or additives like coloring or flavors.  Read more...

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Orange Juice in Salad Dressing

January 14th, 2014 | Posted by Alison Spath in Lunch - (8 Comments)

Oranges show up on the list of 44 affordable healthy food under $1 and I have to agree.  When it comes to saving money on produce, the best (and sort of obvious) tip I have is to buy what’s in season.  Oranges are showing up front and center in the produce section right now, coming in by the truck load from California and Florida (as there are no oranges trees in upstate NY, also sort of obvious).  Read more...

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